Washing-machine



R. F. CLARK.

WASHING MACHINE.

APPLICATION man FEB. 20. 1920.

1,388,800. PatntedAug. 23,1921. Y

7V INVENTOR fobe/t E C/a'rv ATTORNEY UNITED STATES IPA-TENT OFFICE.

ROBERT F. crjhnx, or LAKE CITY, UTAH.

WASHING-MACHINE.

T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT F. CLARK, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Salt Lake City, county of Salt Lake, and

10. chines,"and its principal objects are to pro- State of Utah, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in VVashirig-Ma chines, of which the following, together with the accompanying drawing, forms a full, clear, and exact specification.

This invention relates, to washing mavide: first, a machine which shall be simple in construction, eflicient in operation and economical in cost; second, a machine which shall be easy to operate, and which may be driven by either hand or any other convenient form of power third, a machine which shall not tear or otherwise injure the finest fabrics; fourth, a machine which shall force the water thoroughly through all parts of the clothes in a series of agitating cycles, in each of which the water is alternately forced out of the'clothes by a squeezing action and again drawn into the clothes by a removal of the squeezing actiong fifth, a machine adapted 'for thoroughly cleansing clothes'by means of a swishing' and squeezing action, as opposed to a rubbingand wearing action the axis of the stem, thus allowing it to be In attaining theobjects outlined above, a tub is provided whose body portion preferably has the form of a triangular prism. Just inside one of the vertices of the triangle, formedby the sides of the tub, is a pivotally disposed stem, whose axis may be more or less parallel to the planes of the sides. Extending out from the stem is a branching portion, which may have any suitable form, all the'branches however,preferab ly lying in one plane, the plane being movable'around moved from side to side ofthe tub." The stem may extend through either the top or ing portionI choose to call an agitator.

In using the machine the agitator is moved from side to'side, the clothes on each side of the agitator being. thereby alternately squeezed against a side of the tub, and swished through the water. The swishing action forces water through the clothes and fillsthem'gwith water, whilethe agitator squeezes the water out again. At each Specificationof Letters Patent. Patented Aug. 23, 1921. 7 Application filed February 20, 1920. Serial No. 360,196

stroke of the agitator, the clothes on one side are swished, and the clothes on the other side are squeezed. In this manner, the water can never acquire any rotary motion, but is only dashed from one side to the other. The

clothes are not rubbed against themselves nor against the tub, they are not twisted, they can neither be stretched nor strained,

and hence the wear on the clothes, due to the to a miniwashing operations, is reduced mum.

The features of this invention, upon which collectively hand driven type;

Fig. 2, a plan view of the power driven yp Figs. 8 and 4, vertical sections, taken re-y.

spectively, on line 3.3 in Fig.1, and on line 4-4 in Fig. 2; and

Figs. 5and-6, modified forms-of the agitator.

Referring to the drawing, (Figs. 1 to 4) the machine comprises the tub portion 10, i

the cover portion 11 and the branching portion 12 of the agitator.

In the hand driven type, the agitator may have, the stem 13 with the enlarged shank 14:, which latter may be journaled in the bearing 15 andbe preventedifrom moving upwardly therein, by means of the collar 20. The bearing 15 may have the flange 16, by

means of which the bearing may be rigidly" attached to the cover 11. The shank 14 may terminate in the head 18 which may carry the rigidly mounted handle or lever 19, adapted for manipulation by theoperator.

In the power driven type, (Figs. 3 and 41) the branching portion 12 of the agitator may have the stem 21 which terminates in the shank 22. The shank 22 may be journaled in the stuffing-box 23, the latter being pro-.

vided with the gland 2 1 for preventing the leakage of water from the tub. On the lower part of the shank 22 may be a rigidly mounted arm 25 having the eye '26, in which may be pivoted the end of any suitable connecting rod (not shown). rod may be reciprocated by means of any The connecting well known mechanism suited to thepurpose.

While the preferred form of the branching portion of the agitator isshown at 12,"

in Figs. 3 and 4;, yet the forms thereof may be considerably varied, as represented for instance, in Figs. 5 and 6, these forms having the stems 27 and 28 respectively, and the shanks 141, being adapted for use with the hand driven type already described. The same modifications in the design of the agitator may be applied to the power driven typ In operation, the agitator is moved back and forth in the directions of the arrows 'in Figs. 1 and 2. The agitator, at the end of each stroke, occupies approximately the positions indicated by the dotted lines at 29 and 30 in Fig. 2, the clothes on one side of the agitator being squeezed between the agitator position 29 and the wall 31 of the tub, while the clothes on the other side of the agitator are simultaneously allowed to draw in the water. At the next stroke, the clothes on the side of the agitator between the position 30 and the wall 31 are squeezed while the clothes on the side between the position 30 and the wall 31 simultaneously draw in the water. The cycles described, alternate with each other indefinitely.

It will be noted in Fig. 2, that the agitator in'its movements, sweeps over areas having the shapes of sectors of a circle concentric of an agitator pivotally supported near the;

vertex formed by two of the intersecting planes, the said agitator being adapted to oscillate between the said twoplanes; and

the third plane being tangent to an arc concentric with, and lying somewhat outside of, the are described by the oscillating extremity of the said agitator, the point of tangency being approximately at the center of the said are. i

2. In a washing machine,a tub portion comprising a bottom with three side walls rising vertically therefrom, the said walls lying in three intersecting planes, a bearing supported by the said bottom, an agitator composedof a plurality of consecutive U-portions-with an integral stem forming a part of the first U-portion, the said stem being mounted in the said bearing, the said bearing being so located that the agitator may be oscillated in a manner that will cause it to sweep over an area having the form of the sector of a circle, the bounding radii of the said sector being approximately parallel to two of the said side walls, and the third side wall being tangent to an arc concentric with, and lying just outside, the are described by the oscillating extremity of the said agitator, the point of tangency being approxlmately at the center of the said arc. r 0

3. In a washing machine, the comblnatlon 'with a'tub-portion' having two approximately vertical side walls lying in intersecting planes, of a branching agitator pivotally mounted between the said Walls, the said agitator being adapted to swing from a position approximately parallel to one of the side walls to a position approximately parallel to the other side wall; athird side wall lying in a plane tangent to an arcconcentric with, and lying just out side, the arc described bythe oscillating extremity of the said agitator, the point of tangency being approximately at the center of motion of the said agitator; and curved wall portions adapted to join the said three wall portions to eachother. 4E. In a machine of the character a tub portion having"walls lying approxixmately in .twointersecting planes, an agitator having an oscillating disposed axial member, the axis of the said member being located between, and approximately parallel to line of intersection of, the said planes; the said agitator comprising, further, a plurality of U-portions arranged in series, originating at,-and integral with, the said axial 'member, all of the said parts being so disposed that the said U-portion series may be brought into approximate parallelism with each of the said planes, and means for moving the said agitatorback and forth between the said walls, whereby'washable' units may be carried by the agitator, and the said units be compressed between the said agitator and the said walls with the accompanying result that minimum agitation, while'the portion'of the sa1 d washable units farthest from the said axls shall have a maximum agitation.

5. The combination with a tub portionhavingthree vertically intersecting side walls,"of anagitator having a stem with an axis moreor less parallel, and close to the line of intersectiombetwen two of the said walls, the said agitator adapted to be oscillated around the said axis, and comprising a series of consecutive U-shaped branches integral with the said stem andlying more or less in the same plane; and means-for oscillating the said'agit'ator; the said combination being so constituted that the agitator may carry a bunch of clothes and alternately press the said bunch against the two said I 6. A tub portion having three vertical described, a

the portion of the said washable units nearest the saidoscillating axis shall have a walls, 'two' of theisaid Walls lying'in planes which intersect each other, thereby forming an angular space between the said two walls, an agitator formed of a plurality of U-shaped branching members consecutively disposed,

lying more or less in one plane and located 7 in the angular space, a suitably mounted stem integral with, and adapted to support, the said branching members in such manner that they may be moved 'from a position 10 more or less parallel to one of the said inopposed portions of the said bunch against 15 the said two walls; and means for imparting an oscillating motion to the said agitator. In testimony whereof I sign my name hereto.

ROBT F. CLARK. 

